Every RiverDog has her day.

And no one does it up like Ellie.

 I don't usually post butt-shots, but this one shows just how low the river is.  Jones Island in the background.

 City of Elmira from Gateway area, just downstream from the Madison Avenue bridge.

 Ellie the Mud Puppy.  Dunn Field in center background.

And the last hurrah before going home.  Not fishing, just yet.  Maybe next week.

I always want to remember...

That the 
Common
Merganser
is rather
uncommon
here
in Elmira. 

That these lovely lindens are slowly disappearing.  I understand it is for our flood protection, but it still hurts.

A closeup of its leaves and bracts, for identification.

pb

Visit to the Grove Street Boat Ramp

Where it apparently was family day.

Ellie hunts along the shore.  At one point she found a dead gosling, and poked it gently, then looked up at me.  I hurried her along.

This may be the largest family I've seen this year.  Daddy is fishing next to Mum.

My favorite:  the gentle herding behavior.  Or maybe it's a warning to others to steer clear.

 The willow at the mouth of Hoffman Creek is beginning to bloom.

A smallish family eyes us warily.

 This little fellow struck out on his own, awa from the geese on the shore.

No worries, though.  It joined this larger clan, post-haste.

pb

Birthday Weekend

Both Ellie and I are recovered from our early Spring fevers or flus, or whatever.  We had a perfect weekend to visit the river.  We went out all three days--Saturday, Sunday and Monday.  It doesn't matter that the photos are out of order.  I just want to share.

 I wish I had a truck.  Actually, my SIL has one, but we could never remove this sculpture from the river bank.  I think it's marvelous, even though it is temporary.  There are lots of lovely driftwood sculptures, for every taste.  Like all things in life, they too, must pass.  This will eventually be carried off by a surging storm.  River driftwood has more colors than the ocean variety.  I love it.

The construction of the new Don Hall Portage is evident here.  Ellie apparently misses the point of the railing.

The plentiful rain has made the walkway on the south side of the river very green.  The RiverDog enjoys the hunt for wood chucks.  Here we can see the Walnut Street Bridge.  I am just above average in height, and I must duck down to pass under the bridge. 

Five petals, something from the rose family, I guess.  They are pretty and sweet at this time of year.

 Out behind Pirozollo Park in West Elmira, the water is high and fast.  The RiverDog hunts for roots and fungi.  I don't know what she finds, but they are white, and meaty and come from under the grass.  I can never catch her before she gobbles them up, although she may leave bits for me.  They look like tofu.  She never seems to suffer ill effects, so I guess it's just some sort of vegetable root

 You know him:  Harry the Heron.  That's the name the kids use.  In another week, this little pond will be the focus of a Civil War Reenactment.  Camp Hellmira was here.  In fact this pond, or gully, or culvert was created specifically for the camp.  In the dampness, it is nasty, smelly and bug-ridden.  Many, many Confederate soldiers died here, while the local people paid to stand above them and watch.  If any place should be haunted, this should, but I have never felt anything eerie here. 


And finally, the prize of the weekend.  My first shot of a local osprey!  They are much smaller than eagles.  This is the first one I have seen perched above the water.  They usually swoop in and dive straight down.  When they surface, they carry the fish right out into the hills, never eating it on the banks.

pb

Little Pond



Gateway surprise

What's bigger than a hawk, smaller than an eagle, and incredibly hard to photograph? 

An osprey on wing.  Fortunately, this one sat reasonably still in a tree across the Chemung.  I got a few shots, all taken in the hopes of just identifying the mysterious visitor.

Of course I'm still waiting for a decent shot of and osprey fishing.  Seen them; never photographed them.

pb

Little Pond

Low and Slow

Friday the "pond" around Foster Island was very low, indeed.  I thought (from a distance) these were ducks, but, alas, no.

 On the River side of the island, my eagle-eyed daughter, VeggiGirl, wondered if she spotted goslings.  Being terribly nearsighted, I swung up my trusty camera and zoomed in for a shot.

Yes, indeed; we have our first gosling sighting of 2012!

 One more zoom gave us a good count of seven.  Lucky seven for April 2012.

A little hard to imagine that within a couple of months, local golfers and gardeners will be cursing these cuties.  I can sympathise; my shoes come home caked in goose-poop every time.  Right now, however, they make me go mushy with adoration.

Rain coming means rapid River.  We may not seen any more babies for another week or so.

pb

Little Pond

Winter bug

Managed to get a gastro-intestinal bug this past week, but luckily I recovered enough to visit the River Sunday and Monday.

 In the distance, safely out of reach of my Guard-dachshund, a fisherman shares the shore with some Canada geese.

 Of course I took the RiverDog to play River Fetch! And, of course, the low river level left her stinking of dead fish.  Bath waiting at home.

Cruel necessity will remove these trees, just right of the center, before too long.  The Army Corps of Engineers and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation both dictate they must go.  They are too close to the levee, and would encourage a breach during high flooding.

Each trip really cost me some energy, but they were worth it.  I love my HuggaMutt and I love my Chemung River!

pb
Little Pond